1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to mechanisms for moving targets used at shooting ranges and the like in order to test the skill of the shooter under more life-like conditions. More particularly, the present invention relates to the use of a telephone to selectively actuate targets to more accurately test the abilities of the shooter.
2. State of the Art
In order to maintain proficiency in the use of various types of firearms, it is common for law enforcement officers, military personnel and sportsmen to engage in target practice. In conventional target practice, a target, i.e. an outline of a person, vehicle or animal is held before a bullet trap (or other type of range). The trap receives bullets fired at the target and contains the bullet so that it may be retrieved and recycled. Such traps include total containment systems wherein the bullet is received in a chamber, and less expensive berm traps in which the bullet is received by a bullet deceleration medium, such as sand or small rubber granules.
While target practice at stationary targets improves accuracy in that context, it fails to prepare the shooter for most real life situations. For example, a police officer shooting at a stationary target may obtain a high degree of accuracy in that scenario. However, for most sportsmen, law enforcement officers and military personnel, the situation in which the real target remains stationary is rare. Usually in military or law enforcement contexts, the target will be moving, and in many cases the target may be returning (or instigating) fire.
To ensure that they are properly trained for such real-life conditions, it is important that law enforcement agents, military personnel and hunters have experience firing at targets are not simply stationary. In attempts to provide more realistic training scenarios, numerous systems have been designed which move the target during shooting practice. For example, a computer can be used to selectively turn targets and thereby test the reflexes of the shooter.
One common problem with such embodiments, however, is that the computer controls can rarely adapt to the particular strengths and weaknesses of the shooter. For example, a police officer may have very good reflexes on his or her right side, but may struggle when targets suddenly appear on his or her left side. A conventional computer program will simply run through the shooting drill. A different program must be run to address the reflex disparity.
Thus, there is a need for a system in which a person overseeing the target range can target control turning and movement from a remote location to better customize the target movement to the needs of the shooter.